Dermot Ahern

Dermot Ahern TD
Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform
Incumbent
Assumed office  7 May 2008
Taoiseach	Brian Cowen
Preceded by	Brian Lenihan
Minister for Foreign Affairs
In office 29 September 2004 – 7 May 2008
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Brian Cowen
Succeeded by	Micheál Martin
Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources
In office 6 June 2002 – 29 September 2004
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Frank Fahey
Succeeded by	Noel Dempsey
Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs
In office 26 June 1997 – 6 June 2002
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Prionsias de Rossa
Succeeded by	Mary Coughlan
Teachta Dála
Incumbent
Assumed office  17 February 1987
Preceded by	Pádraig Faulkner
Constituency	Louth
Born	20 April 1955 (1955-04-20) (age 54) Drogheda, County Louth
Nationality	Irish
Political party	Fianna Fáil
Alma mater	University College Dublin
Occupation	Former Solicitor
Website	Official website

Dermot Christopher Ahern (born 20 April 1955) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician and is the current Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. He is a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Louth constituency.^[1]

Early and private life

Dermot Ahern was born in Drogheda, County Louth in 1955. He was educated at the Marist College in Dundalk and later attended University College Dublin. Afterwards he studied at the Law Society of Ireland and was admitted as a solicitor. He then started a successful career as a solicitor.

Ahern currently lives in Blackrock near Dundalk with his wife and their two children. His pastimes include playing golf and windsurfing. He is a former Ulster windsurfing champion.^[2] Ahern is a former chairman of Rock Celtic soccer club and was also treasurer of Dundalk F.C. Supporter's Club.

Early political career

Ahern was born into a family that had no association with party politics. He became involved in politics at a young age and became a member of Louth County Council in 1979 as a Fianna Fáil representative. He served on that authority until 1991. Ahern was elected to Dáil Éireann at the 1987 general election and has retained his seat ever since.^[3] The following year he was appointed assistant government chief whip by Taoiseach Charles Haughey.

Three years later in 1991 the Minister for Finance, Albert Reynolds, failed in his attempt to oust Haughey as leader. Ahern, who supported Haughey, was rewarded with the post of Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach with special responsibility as Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at the Department of Defence. In February 1992 Haughey was forced to resign and Albert Reynolds became party leader and Taoiseach. Ahern became a backbencher for the entire duration of the Fianna Fáil-Labour Party government.

In late 1994 Bertie Ahern (no relation) succeeded Albert Reynolds as leader of Fianna Fáil. Ahern once again returned to the senior ranks of the party becoming chief whip. In 1997 he was sent to London to check out rumours that another senior party member, Ray Burke, had received a payment from Joseph Murphy. The claim was denied and Burke was appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs two days later following the return to power of Fianna Fáil. Burke later served a jail sentence for corruption including the Murphy bribe. Ahern has, since. taken a stance on the issue of political corruption in Ireland publicly calling for an outright ban of corporate and trade union donations to political parties.^[4]

In more recent times Ahern's religious beliefs have been questioned especially in the way that his religious ideology may influence his political standpoint.^[5]

Cabinet career

1997–2002: Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs

Following the 1997 general election a Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrats came to power and Ahern was appointed Minister for Community, Social and Family Affairs. As Social Affairs Minister Ahern also introduced the largest social welfare and pension increases in Irish history. He also achieved pension rights for Irish people who had emigrated from Ireland prior to 1953.

2002–2004: Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources

Following the return of the government at the 2002 general election Ahern was appointed Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. In this post he was critical of the main telecommunications provider Eircom. His Department introduced a system of Policy Directions to the telecoms regulator mandating, amongst other things, Flat Rate Internet Access. It also devised the Ireland's Broadband Action Plan which entailed the government building an alternative fibre infractructure and co-location facilities. He sanctioned a reform package for public service broadcasting in Ireland and introduced a Charter for Ireland's national broadcaster RTÉ. His Department introduced a programme to provide free broadband internet access to schools. He secured EU recognition and protection of the Irish Box, an area of Irish territorial waters out of bounds to Spanish and Portuguese fishermen.

2004–2008: Minister for Foreign Affairs

Following a cabinet reshuffle in 2004 Ahern became Minister for Foreign Affairs, the first Louth TD to hold that position since Frank Aiken in the 1960s. Shortly into his tenure in April 2005 Ahern was appointed one of four special envoys for United Nations reform by the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan.

Ahern spoke of the 'Third Phase' in Irish foreign policy which he calls "Active Neutrality". This is a vision of non-aligned Ireland taking up its international responsibilities by acting as a bridge between the developed and developing world, and by acting as a world leader in conflict and disasters. In this regard he took an extremely outspoken line on the crisis in Darfur, calling on the international community to 'wake up to the reality of rape, murder and destruction in the region.^[6] More recently Ahern has announced the establishment of an Irish Volunteer Corps and a Rapid Response Corps which would harness existing expertise amongst the Irish public to assist in the developing world. ^[7] HE has stated that, in foreign policy terms, 'the single greatest, economic, environmental, geopolitical issue now facing us is climate change.'^[8]

As Foreign Minister, Ahern was heavily involved in the Northern Ireland peace process. Like many others in his party he describes himself as a republican and stated at the 2006 Seán Moylan commemoration in Cork that "as an Irish Republican my main personal and political goal is to live to see the unity of Ireland."

As Foreign Minister he led a campaign to secure a path to permanent residency for the 25,000 to 50,000 undocumented Irish citizens resident in the United States. He also introduced free passports for Irish senior citizens and had called for a comprehensive ban on the use of cluster munitions. Ahern was the first government Minister to call for a constitutional referendum on the issues arising from the supreme court decision on statutory rape, five months before it became government policy.^[9]

2008–present: Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform

Ahern was appointed Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform on the 7 May 2008 by the new Taoiseach Brian Cowen. On 29 April 2009, Ahern proposed a controversial amendment to the Defamation Bill adding the crime of blasphemy to the statute books.^[10] This amendment was passed in the Dáil on the 9 July 2009 with only an hour of the debate set aside for the bill, and was then narrowly passed by the Seanad the next day by walk-through vote, after being defeated in the initial electronic vote.^[11]

The amendment has been criticized by many within the public sphere, free speech campaigners and some ministers of European Union member states.^[12] As of 2010, the law is in effect.

Ahern is responsible for the Civil Partnership Bill 2009 published on 26 June 2009.^[13]

He received the Murphy Report into child sexual abuse in the Dublin Diocese in June 2009.^[14] Most of the report was published on 26 November 2009 of that year, though parts were not, due to names that were undergoing prosecution.

Comments during debate on decriminalisation of Homosexuality

During the debate on decriminalisation of Homosexuality in the Dáil in 1993, he agreed with a statement by Fine Gael TD, Brendan McGahon which reads: "Homosexuality is a departure from normality and while homosexuals deserve our compassion they do not deserve our tolerance" and who described homosexuals as being "like lefthand drivers driving on the right-hand side of the road."

Ahern himself added: "Will we eventually see the day in this country when, as has happened in the USA, homosexuals will seek the right to adopt children? We should think seriously about this possibility". Following his appointment as Minister responsible for equality, Ahern has refused to be drawn on this matter and has not given an answer as to whether he still holds those opinions.^[15]

Controversy over Michael McKevitt

Dermot Ahern denied claims that he had made representations to former Minister for Justice Michael McDowell on behalf of Michael McKevitt, who has been convicted of directing terrorism.^[16][17] He said that had merely forwarded an email from McKevitts' wife, Bernadette Sands McKevitt, who was a constituent in 2004.^[16][17]

References

External links

• Dermot Ahern's official website
• Dermot Ahern's page on the Fianna Fáil website